The Jewel Team
Kate Margalit, DVM, DACVS
Dr. Kate is an experienced board-certified surgeon, serving pets of the Upstate since 2012. A New York native and 2005 graduate of Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, she pursued her passion for surgery with an additional five years of specialized internship and residency training.
She feels grateful to have the opportunity to provide specialized care to your cherished pets. Dr. Kate loves performing an array of both soft tissue and orthopedic surgeries.
Outside of the operating room, she has a passion for painting, organization, and design. Dr. Kate loves to travel, read, and spend quality time with her loving family (often running after her two very energetic boys and dog). She met her husband, Jake, while pursuing her specialty surgical internship in San Diego. She strives to teach her sons to have empathy, demonstrate leadership, and find joy with whatever interests they pursue.
Gennifer Sweatman
Geneffer is originally from South Carolina and has spent nearly seven years working in both general practice and emergency/specialty veterinary medicine. She has found her passion in surgery, where she loves both orthopedic and soft tissue procedures, as well as managing anesthesia. Geneffer has a special interest in pain management, regional anesthesia, and making sure every patient is comfortable and well cared for after surgery. She holds a B.S. in Animal and Veterinary Science from Clemson University and is in the works to earn her veterinary technician license to further advance her skills and professional growth.
When she’s not at work, Geneffer is usually hanging out with her two dogs, Axle and Thumper, four cats—Freya, Merlin, Karlach, and Ahsoka—and her small flock of chickens. She also enjoys knitting, crocheting, playing video games, and taking photos of animals and nature in her free time.
Katy Salpas, LVT
Katy graduated from Clemson University in 2016 with a degree in Animal & Veterinary Science, then went back to school and became a Licensed Veterinary Technician in 2018. She has worked in a small animal veterinary specialty hospital as a surgical technician for 6 years and prior to that has multiple years of experience working in general practice.
When she is not busy trying to keep up with Dr. Kate, Katy enjoys being outdoors in the sunshine with her two dogs (Riggs and Nix), reading, and horseback riding. You’ll also often find her and her husband traveling to another state or country to explore!
Ruth DePue
Ruth is a South Carolina native who has been in the veterinary field for 25 years and has a passion for animals. Since childhood, she always knew she wanted to work with animals and has made it her life’s work to assist clients in caring for their pets. Ruth has diverse veterinary experiences in her career, but has found that she has a passion for anesthesia and surgery. She is actively pursuing her veterinary technician license. She and her husband have the best five fur babies: Hope, Storm, Lexi, Willow, and Falkor. In her spare time, you can find her hiking, kayaking, and biking as well as spending time with friends and family.
Erin Cooper
Erin is a native of South Carolina with a Bachelor's of Animal Science from Clemson University. She has a strong passion for helping animals, starting with large animal veterinary medicine as an early teenager. While she has experience with both equine and small animals, her heart has truly resonated with small animal surgery. Erin's favorite surgery is hind limb fracture repair. When she's not in the OR, you'll find her playing outside with her menagerie of pets: 2 dogs, 3 cats, and 4 year old son, or riding one of her horses.
Juniper!
Juniper joins Jewel VS currently vying for a managerial position but is still our proud mascot featured in many of our marketing materials. She has no surgical experience, but feels strongly she is qualified to manage Dr. Kate. Junie Boonie will voice her opinion about almost everything. She serves as an unofficial therapy dog for our staff. Her qualifications currently under review include (but are not limited to) her commitments to nose print art on every glass window and cardboard ingestion (for the added fiber to her diet). She has many tricks that she will occasionally agree to perform for the “good” treats and loves all belly rubs.